Why in the world , would WDW close down SPLASH Mt during EMH?

[lugnut33]

This whole concept of letting the ride rest for maintenance is just silly. Why not take it out of commission from Jan. thru March and do a real refurbishment if it needs it?

It comes down to money. It's an expensive attraction to operate. This will help the bottom line and get Iger a bigger bonus at the end of the year.

 

[DCTooTall]

This whole concept of letting the ride rest for maintenance is just silly. Why not take it out of commission from Jan. thru March and do a real refurbishment if it needs it?

It comes down to money. It's an expensive attraction to operate. This will help the bottom line and get Iger a bigger bonus at the end of the year.

IMHO, I think based off the reports we've had this year of the ride's condition and reliability this year would hint that maybe they decided that they needed more time to do some repairs overnight to keep the ride operational during the busy holiday season. Splash is the only ride that I know tends to go down annually for a month long refurb, usually in January. This year they skipped that annual refurb because of the extended Big Thunder refurb that was being done. My guess is they were hoping the ride could wait until next year's usually scheduled refurb, but that maybe the wear and tear and resulting show quality has made them realize that something needed to be done sooner rather than later.

So they remove it from EMH during the "colder" off-peak period to do what needs to be done overnight, trying to keep the attraction going thru the busy holiday period until it can go down for it's annual refurb in January.


Now, I wouldn't be shocked in the slightest if the staffing cost savings played a role in the decision.... but personally I don't believe that would be the deciding factor. (The bigger question is if it returns to EMH rotation after the refurb in January, or if they'll decide that 'guest surveys' show it wasn't missed during EMH and decide to keep it closed during EMH.)

 

[lugnut33]

IMHO, I think based off the reports we've had this year of the ride's condition and reliability this year would hint that maybe they decided that they needed more time to do some repairs overnight to keep the ride operational during the busy holiday season. Splash is the only ride that I know tends to go down annually for a month long refurb, usually in January. This year they skipped that annual refurb because of the extended Big Thunder refurb that was being done. My guess is they were hoping the ride could wait until next year's usually scheduled refurb, but that maybe the wear and tear and resulting show quality has made them realize that something needed to be done sooner rather than later.

So they remove it from EMH during the "colder" off-peak period to do what needs to be done overnight, trying to keep the attraction going thru the busy holiday period until it can go down for it's annual refurb in January.


Now, I wouldn't be shocked in the slightest if the staffing cost savings played a role in the decision.... but personally I don't believe that would be the deciding factor. (The bigger question is if it returns to EMH rotation after the refurb in January, or if they'll decide that 'guest surveys' show it wasn't missed during EMH and decide to keep it closed during EMH.)

An extra 2 hours a couple of times a week isn't going to make a difference on maintenance. This move was money driven.

If the ride needs as much help as you're saying then they should close it and do a real refurb.

 

[DCTooTall]

An extra 2 hours a couple of times a week isn't going to make a difference on maintenance. This move was money driven.

If the ride needs as much help as you're saying then they should close it and do a real refurb.

Make a MAJOR difference? Not a chance. Make a small difference that could help them limp it along thru the holidays? Possibly.

Since it's a water attraction, think of it this way: Instead of taking the boat out of the water and into drydock to fix a major leak, This is Disney supplying the park maintenance people with a bucket they can use to try and bail out the boat as it's sinking.

I Don't deny in the least that this was money driven. My only question is where did he money decision make the final call. Operational expenses during EMH I'm not sure would've been a big enough savings for Disney to pull the trigger on it's own. There could also be a $$ factor on scheduling the Refurb. Even though Disney as a whole has a ton of money, Maybe the money they would need to pay for the major refurb isn't in the budget at this time. With major expenses like that, in a bigger company like Disney, quite often the funds to pay for it will be set up within a particular quarter or FY budget. Prior to the start of that quarter or FY, even if they know the money is going to be there, they can't really touch it.

 

[Joshua_me]

Hmm...

I suppose I can understand it from a "budget" point of view, but some of the most magical memories I have from the EMH's is being able to ride all three "mountains" with little to NO wait time.

In fact, it was Xmas Eve '09 that I remember most fondly of all.

The MK was opened until 1am, and there was NO line at all for SM, BTMR, or Space Mountain !

Great Caesar's Ghost, it was glorious !

To be able to run from one mountain to the next was a memorable time, to say the least, (and it wasn't like it was "free", when one thinks about it...)

Thinking back, the best time we had was on Big Thunder. Since the ride ends where it begins, we were able to ride it over and over... SIX TIMES if memory serves, just because there were no other people in line. A real Christmas treat.

As far as Splash Mountain goes... Yes. You get wet. Who cares ?

It's just water ! It dries. The thrill of having little to NO wait outweighs, IMO, the "problem" of having wet clothes.

You're at Disney !

Trust me, 20 years from now your memories won't consist of, "Well, it was an OK place, but my jeans and sweatshirt were moist."

*sheesh*

It saddens me that Splash will be eliminated from the EMH's, hopefully it's temporary.

Don't get me wrong, I love the Tiki Room, but it's a inadequate replacement for one of the greatest, (perhaps the *best* ?) ride in the MK.

 

[disneydad78]

Talked to the booking cast member on the phone other day, making some changes for our trip this Dec. She told me noone has been complaining about Splash being shut down for EMH. HUM, I said well , Ill be your first. Come on people we need to call, email, anything.
Our best memories at evening EMH are riding Splash Mountain.